


Caged

by timeladyofletters



Category: Supernatural
Genre: Demons, F/M, Hostage Situations, Mentions of Sex, Reader-Insert, Violence
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-11-25
Updated: 2015-08-26
Packaged: 2018-02-27 00:29:32
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 6
Words: 11,117
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2672126
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/timeladyofletters/pseuds/timeladyofletters
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>When the reader becomes the prisoner of a group of demons, its up to her and Dean Winchester to save each other.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Caught

_I should have listened to Bobby._ That was the most prominent thought running through your mind as you sat in your dingy cell. He told you not to go on that hunt alone. He told you to wait for the Winchesters. But you were just too damn stubborn.

This case was a bizarre one to begin with. Residents of a small town in Connecticut were disappearing without any signs of a struggle; which normally wouldn’t seem to be your type of gig. But then the demonic omens started to pop up, and you knew something more sinister was at play.  So you headed on over to the town and after a slew of interviews you came to a conclusion: all of the missing victims were last seen at a local nightclub called “The Cage”. It baffled you that the real police hadn’t figured that out, but you didn’t dwell on it for too long. Once you decided to scope out the place while it was still daytime, you called Bobby to give him an update on the hunt.

“I don’t wanna tell you how to do your job, Y/N, but you really should wait for Sam and Dean before you go in there,” he had said. Bobby practically raised you after your parents were killed by a wendigo when you were twelve, so naturally he was very overprotective. Normally you would accept help from other hunters, especially the Winchesters, but you were still pissed over what happened last time.

“No way, Bobby! I can handle this on my own. Besides, last time we worked together, Dean said that I’m better at playing the bait than I am at being an actual hunter. Can you believe that?!” That jerk was always saying things like that to you.

The relationship between you and Dean had always been a rocky one. You were close when you were teenagers, but after you helped Sam enroll at Stanford, Dean became very cold towards you. It wasn’t until John Winchester went missing that Dean started talking to you again, and even still, the two of you bickered more than anything else.

“Y/N, you and I both know that Dean is the biggest idjit out of all of us, but he means well. They’re only a few hours away from where you are. Just let them help?” Bobby pleaded. He knew you hated it when he got all sentimental on you.

“Fine!” you huffed in annoyance. “I’ll wait. But if he pisses me off, I’m shooting him in the foot.” Then you hung up before Bobby could defend Dean any more. You didn’t hate Dean, not really. You actually admired him a great deal, and enjoyed his company most of the time. But for some reason, everything he did lately just irked you. He had some weird effect on you that you couldn’t explain.

Of course, you went to the club right after you were finished talking to Bobby. The Cage was located on the edge of the town, in an area that was neither deserted nor populated. It seemed easy enough; it didn’t take long for you to pick the lock. The interior was like the outside of the building: industrial but stylish, not that you knew what counted as “stylish” these days. You held your gun in one hand and a flashlight in the other as you snooped around, looking for any sort of clue as to what was going on in this town. Suddenly, the strobe lights all turned on, momentarily blinding you; and the music blasted through the many speakers. You couldn’t hear or see the form behind you until it was too late. You felt a sharp pain pierce your neck. A few seconds later, you became drowsy. And then you blacked out.

***********************

You woke up in a room that could only be described as being a cross between a medical lab and a torture chamber. Your mind instantly went into hunter mode, analyzing the situation. You were strapped down to a cold examination table, a light hovered above your head. There were tools on a table a few feet away from where you were, and beside the table was a woman.

“Good morning,” she drawled as she made her way towards you; her black demon eyes flickering.

“What the hell do you want?” you spat.

“Me? You were the one snooping around in  _my_  club. I should be the one asking you that, but it’s painfully obvious. You’re a hunter, you want to know why all those people disappeared, blah blah blah.” She explained animatedly, her hands making obscure gestures.

“Yeah, so are you gonna tell me your master plan before you kill me or what?” you asked, trying to buy yourself some time to figure out an escape plan. Demons were a pretentious breed, so it wasn’t difficult to keep them talking about themselves.

“Kill you? Oh no, we have big plans for you. We’ve had a lot of different creatures here, but you’re the first hunter to grace us with your presence. Just think of the possibilities!”

You shot her a confused look. Nothing she was saying made any sense.

“Oh, right. I didn’t tell you.” She continued. “You’re a lab rat. All those other people we took at the club? Lab rats. This is a research facility. We have humans, vampires, werewolves, shape shifters, vetalas; hell we even have an okami here. We do experiments on them. Cut them open, mutate their DNA. We even breed them together to create even more powerful monsters to serve us.”

Your eyes widened in horror. This was a scenario from every sci-fi movie you’d ever seen, and yet you knew that the demon in front of you was telling the truth. How could something like this be happening without anyone knowing about it?

“Wow. You sick twisted freak,” you sneered, hoping that your fake bravado would mask how truly terrified you were. “There’s a whole team of hunters looking for me right now, so if I were you, I’d haul ass back to hell.”

“We’ll take our chances,” the demon said, unfazed by your threat. Then she picked up a needle and placed the sharp tip at the base of your neck, just like someone had earlier at the club. “My colleagues and I need to discuss our options for you, so you can take a nap for now.” Then she injected you with the tranquilizer.

***********************

They locked you in a cell; a tiny room with a heavy metal door and a cot. For demons, they treated you surprisingly well. You were fed twice a day, though the food was barely edible, and they let you out of your room to use bathroom when you needed to. You fought back whenever you got close enough to one of your captors, but it was no use. From what you saw of the place, there were a lot of other prisoners like you, and even more demons to keep you all in line.

After a few days, the demons finally figured out what to do with you. You became their entertainment. They would put you in an arena with a monster and watch as the two of you fought to the death, like a twisted version of a gladiator.  At first you refused, but then it became abundantly clear that your opponents had every intention to rip your throat out. After a few days, you had faced off against a werewolf, a djinn and a kitsune. For every fight, the demons had made sure to arm you with the weapons necessary to kill the monster of the day, a kindness that you both loathed and appreciated.

Eventually, you became someone you could barely recognize. The hesitance and fear you felt when you were first captured were gone. Instead, you did what you had to in order to survive; killing monsters and being compliant. You were calm. Emotionless. Submissive. You did what you were told without fighting back. No matter how much your conscious screamed at you to not give in, your mind and body wouldn’t listen. If you were to survive, you had to play by the demons’ rules. And so it continued.

You didn’t face combat everyday. The demons allowed you some days off in order to recover between fights. You assumed that was because they were enjoying having you as their dancing puppet, and you were in no position to rebel. You hated yourself for being so weak, but you had no other options.

Things changed the day you were to fight the vampire. You entered the arena, machete in hand; the eyes of a dozen demons piercing into you. Then the vamp entered from the opposite end of the arena. She was petite, blonde, and she looked terrified.

“P-please…I don’t want to fight,” she stammered, tears gushing from her eyes. You almost felt sorry for her, until you remembered that she was just as much of a threat to you as you were to her.

“That’s not how this works,” you sighed, raising your blade.

“NO! PLEASE!” she screamed, throwing herself against the wall, as if she were trying to run through it. “I’m not a fighter! I don’t even kill people! I just want to go home to my sister Lenore!”

You knew that name. Didn’t Sam once tell you about a group of vampires who didn’t feed off of humans?

“Lenore?” you asked, lowering your arm. “You’re from Lenore’s group?”

“Yes!” she insisted. “My name’s Mia. I don’t kill people, I drink animal blood and steal from blood banks, that’s all!”

“Look Mia, I’m sorry, but one of us has to kill the other or we’re both gonna have to face the consequences,” you apologized. You didn’t want to kill her, but you didn’t have a choice, did you? 

Suddenly, Mia jumped at you, grabbed the machete from your hand and threw it to the side. Then she grabbed your shoulders and said, “You’re a hunter, right? Why are you taking this shit from these demons?! Why are you acting like their obedient mutt? Fight back!”

You realized that this bloodsucker was more courageous than you had become. Shame began to run through your veins, cold as ice but shocking enough to snap you out of the reverie you had been in for the past few days.

She was right. You didn’t want to admit it, but she was right. You thought that you could survive by being obedient, and it was working, but at what cost? They were surely going to kill you eventually anyways, so you had two options: you could choose to die later as their pet, or you could die early as a hunter; fighting until your last breath. Before you could act, the arena was swarmed by demons. They dragged you and Mia away, locking you in your respective cells. You were kicking and screaming and swearing the entire time.

*********************

They didn’t give you food that day and the day after that, but you didn’t care. Being starved was the least cruel punishment the demons could have inflicted on you. A few days after your act of defiance with the vampire, you were visited by the demon who you had met when you were first brought there; whose name you had learned was Grace.

“We had such high hopes for you, Y/N,” Grace sighed through the barred opening of the door as if she were a disappointed parent. “You really did liven things up around here, but it seems to be time to move you to another department.”

“Oh, good. I was getting bored anyways.” You snarled. “Why don’t you just fight me yourself, you evil bitch!”

Grace laughed condescendingly. “You’re feisty today! Don’t worry, pet. Your next assignment should be much more fun,” she said, cryptically. “And, you get a partner!” Then she left.

So many different scenarios raced through your mind.  _What did she mean by that?_ Your question was answered an hour later, when a demon guard opened the door, and a new person was shoved into your cell. His green eyes locked onto yours instantly, and he rushed over to you as soon as the door slammed shut.

“Y/N, are you okay? Are you hurt? Do you know who I am?” Dean quietly questioned you at a rapid pace, placing his hands on your shoulders and looking you over for injuries. You had minor cuts and bruises all over your body, but those were the last things on your mind at the moment.

“Dean, what are you doing here?” you insisted. You were relieved to see the older Winchester, but that relief soon turned to annoyance, and then to anger. How could he have gotten caught too?!

“Oh, didn’t they tell you?” he smirked. His lips quirked up mischievously, despite the dire situation you were both in. “I’m your breeding partner. We’re supposed to copulate every night until you get pregnant.”


	2. Trapped

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> An old friend comes to the reader's rescue, but the two of them find out that they're in more danger than they realize.

You stood in stunned silence and took a few steps backwards as you processed what the man in your cell had just told you. “Excuse me?” you asked, your voice cold and hollow.

“You heard me,” Dean replied. “They want you and me to breed together like animals at the zoo.” He shook his head and walked past you. When he got close, you practically jumped away from him. He noticed, of course, but he didn’t say anything. Instead, he plopped himself down onto your cot and waited for you to speak again.

“God, that’s disgusting. I can’t believe I’m in this mess,” you said as you wrapped your arms around yourself in an attempt to get your erratic heartbeat under control.

The room was quiet again, aside from the occasional screams and cackles that echoed from other parts of the building. Dean took a deep breath before asking, “Are you alright, Y/N? Are you hurt? What did they do to you?”

You looked straight into his face for the first time since he was put into your room a few minutes ago. Even though you two got into a huge fight the last time you saw each other and parted on bad terms, he seemed to be genuinely worried about you.

“I’m okay,” you muttered, but you could tell by his expression that he knew you were lying and he was expecting the whole story. So you told him. You told him about the case you were investigating, and the club, and how you ended up in that hellhole. You told him about the gladiator matches you had been forced into. The only thing you left out was the fact that Bobby had warned you against going on this hunt alone and how he has insisted on you accepting help from the Winchesters. Of course, Dean already knew about that.

“Sam and I were already on our way to you when Bobby called and said that he lost contact with you,” he started. “We asked around and found the club. Once we realized what was going on, I decided to take the risky route and use myself as bait.”

Your eyes widened in disbelief. Dean Winchester, the Dean Winchester, used himself as bait? You never thought you would see the day.

“Yeah, yeah, don’t look at me like that. I know what you’re thinking. Anyways, Sammy was completely against it, but you know how I get when I set my mind to something. So I went to the club last night, danced with some girls, had a few drinks. Next thing I know, I’m here. I had my phone with me until they took it from me a few hours ago, and hopefully Sam’s been tracking me the whole time.”

“Wait, wait,” you interjected, waving your hands around in confusion. “They took you, just like that? They don’t know who you are?”

“Nope,” Dean said, making a popping sound on the P. “And we need to keep it that way if I’m gonna get you outta here.”

You nodded and then slowly slid down the wall to sit on the floor. The pain and exhaustion from the past few days were weighing heavily on your body; and the malnourishment from the food, or lack of, wasn’t doing you any favors. You pulled your knees up and hugged them to your chest as a shiver ran though you.

 “Y/N?” Dean asked hesitantly.

“Hmm?” you replied.

“Why didn’t you kill the vamp? I’m not judging or anything, just curious.”

You had to take a minute to think through your answer. “She was scared. Maybe even more scared than I was,” you explained. “I had spent all of my days here killing my way through monsters. And yeah, that’s what we do on a regular basis anyways, but this was different. I’m just as trapped as the rest of them, but I became more brutal and savage than most things we hunt. It got to a point where it was like my humanity was slipping away and I didn’t notice until she begged me to spare her.”

You paused to gauge Dean’s expression, but his face was stoic. You looked away quickly, refusing to meet his eyes. “I realized that there was only one monster in that arena and it wasn’t her,” you finished, your voice just above a whisper.

When you looked back at Dean, you saw that look of worry on his face again. His brows were furrowed and his usually sparking green eyes were dark and cloudy. He was staring at you, as if he were examining you. You couldn’t tell if the look was innocent or something more, but you didn’t call him out on it. Just when he opened his mouth to say something to you, the door opened.

“Oh good, you two have met,” Grace purred from in the doorway. A demon in the form of a large, hulking man stood menacingly behind her petite form. “Now Y/N, play nice with your little boy toy. We need you to get good and pregnant so we can get our experiments underway ASAP.”

Clearly, they still didn’t know that Dean was a hunter, let alone an ally of yours. But the word “experiments” was enough to make your blood run cold.

“What experiments?” you asked emotionlessly. You noticed that Dean was still sitting on the cot, silently.

“Well, pet,” Grace began to explain. “As soon as your mate here fertilizes you, we’ll start messing around with your genetics. Maybe we’ll give your spawn some shifter DNA. Or kitsune DNA. Or maybe we’ll blend its DNA with something really nasty, like a ghoul? The possibilities are endless, really.” Her voice was like nails on a chalkboard, yet you hung onto her every word.

You let out the most sarcastic, humorless laugh you could muster. “Not gonna happen, you evil bitch,” you spat; lunging up from the floor to land a punch to the demon’s face. Through your violent rage, you could vaguely hear Dean yelling for you to stop while simultaneously trying to pull you off of Grace. A part of you knew that he has struggling the keep up the guise of a naïve civilian, and you were thankful that at least one of you was keeping their cool.

Grace grabbed you by your throat, cutting off your air, and rose to her feet. Then she slammed you into the stone wall of your cell, and you could feel blood running down the back of your head to your neck.

“Listen here you little slut,” Grace spewed, still choking you. “You will do what I say. If you refuse, then I’ll kill this innocent man here while you watch,” she gestured to Dean. Only you could see the subtle rage shuddering through him. Grace then said, “After that I’ll kill all the other humans we have here, and before they die, they’ll be sure to know that it’s your fault.”

When she finally let you go, you had to lean on the wall to stay upright. You refused to let her see how much pain you were in. Then Grace turned to Dean. “Your first round of copulation is to begin now,” she stated, all business. A few seconds later, she was gone. As soon as she left and locked the door, you collapsed to the ground, heaving deep breaths into your burning lungs. Dean was at your side in a heartbeat.

“Breathe, just breathe,” he coaxed as he crouched down beside you to rub calming circles into your back. “Shit Y/N, your head is bleeding,” he observed. His hands then went to the back of your head, moving your hair gently so he could inspect the damage. But Dean touching you was the last thing you wanted at that moment.

“I’m fine,” you insisted between coughs. “Just leave me alone.”

“Y/N, you’re hurt. I’m just trying to help.” Dean soothed. 

“No! Don’t you dare touch me!” you snarled, shoving him away from you. Dean stumbled back on the floor, blinking at you in shock.

“You’ve been flinching away from me ever since I got here,” Dean stated quietly. “It’s like you think I would do something to you, like what the demon wants.”

He waited for you to confirm or deny his suspicions, but you remained silent.

“Is that what you think of me? You think I would touch you in the way they want me to? Y/N, I know I’m a dick most of the time, but you’ve known me forever. Do you really think I would do something like that to anyone, most of all you?” His voice sounded angry, but there was pain in his eyes. Dean nodded, as if he was telling himself that that was what you believed. You wanted to tell him no, that you didn’t think that at all, but you couldn’t make yourself speak.

Dean sighed and removed his over shirt, leaving him in a black t-shirt. Then he tossed the shirt at your feet and said, “Use that to stop the bleeding.” Then he moved to sit in front of the door, bracing back against it and closing his eyes.

You knew Dean well. Hell, sometimes you even considered him to be a close friend. You knew that despite his flaws, he was a good guy, and he would never ever take advantage of a girl in that way. But your time in captivity had put you on edge, clouding your judgement. After what seemed like hours, you finally spoke.

“I don’t think you’re like that, Dean,” you told him tentatively as you held his discarded shirt to the back of your aching head. “I know you’re a good guy, and you would never hurt me. You’re only in this mess because I was stupid enough to get caught, and I’m sorry for that. It’s like I told you, this place is turning me into someone I don’t wanna be. I really am sorry.”

Dean smiled sadly and got up and walked over to you. Then he took your hand, pulled you off the floor, and sat you down on the cot. He moved to sit behind you so he could assess your injured head.

“The bleeding seems to have stopped, and I don’t think the wound is too deep so you shouldn’t need stitches,” he informed you as he carefully worked his fingers through your blood-matted hair. “And you don’t need to apologize. You have every right to be angry. Just remember who you need to direct your anger at when the time is right, okay?”

You were about to respond when the door opened to reveal Grace, yet again; a fire in her eyes and a knowing smile on her red lips.

“So, the demon I had left to eavesdrop at your door has told me some very interesting things,” she drawled as two large male demons filed into the room after her. “Apparently, pretty boy here,” she pointed at Dean, “is a friend of yours. And he’s a hunter too? Lying isn’t very nice, you know.”

As she took a few more steps towards you, Dean moved to stand in front of you protectively. Normally you would object and insist that you could take care of yourself, but at that moment you were no shape to fight. The two male demons suddenly charged at Dean. He put up a good stance for a few minutes, throwing well aimed punches and kicks which actually seemed to hurt the demons. Armed or not, Dean was still a warrior. However, while that was happening, Grace had beat you down and locked a pair of handcuffs around your wrists; distracting Dean long enough for the two demons to overpower him and cuff him as well.

“Well since the two of you won’t co-operate, it seems like we need to find a new use for you here,” she said in a sing-song voice, ignoring Dean’s snarled threats and curses. Suddenly her face lit up, as if she just had an epiphany. “Hey Y/N, guess what?” she asked you, squeezing your face in one hand and turning your head to face Dean. “I think we just found your next opponent in the arena.”


	3. Rage

The next hour was a blur. Your head continued to pound as people, no not people – demons, flurried around you. There was excited chatter of an upcoming fight to be seen, but you didn’t care. You were too hungry, too tired and too injured to care. All you could think about was who you were going to kill first when you got the chance, and how you were going to find Dean.

He was taken away from you when the demons, led by Grace, dragged the two of you out of the cell. You were too weak to kick and scream, but Dean was doing enough of that for the both of you. Now you had no idea where he was, or what they were doing to him, and that scared you.

You were locked in another cell, even smaller than your previous one, with nothing but your thoughts. Without your permission, your mind flashed back to what happened between you and Dean earlier. Despite his cocky façade, you always knew that he was a genuinely good man. There had been times during the years that you’d known him where he showed how nice he really was, but those moments were usually reserved for Sam, Ellen, or children.

If you didn’t know any better, you would have thought that the Dean you were with that day was a whole different person. He was kind to you. And comforting. He was in just as much danger as you were, yet his focus seemed to be more on keeping you sane and less on saving himself. The biggest surprise was your own reaction to him. You had hoped that he didn’t notice how your heartbeat sped up when tended to your injuries.

You were so lost in your thoughts that when the door to your new cage swung open, you jumped up with a start and a yelp. Grace was there again, leading a large demon in to handcuff you. She gave you an acidic smile as they walked you out of the room and down the hall. If took all of seven seconds for you to realize where they were taking you. You had been there too many times to not know.

The walk to the arena jogged your hazy memory. Something about you having a new opponent to fight. A part of you knew exactly who that opponent was, but you refused to listen. You didn’t want it to be true. When you reached your destination, the big demon removed your handcuffs, handed you a knife and situated you in front of the massive door. You had the urge to use your knife on him right then and there, but you knew it wouldn’t do much damage. A regular weapon was no match for a hell-spawn. The door opened, and the demon pushed you inside the arena.

The arena was brightly lit, with spotlights pointed down at you. The arena was nothing more than a huge, glorified boxing ring with metal bars surrounding the sides and the top. Outside of the ring were at least twenty demons, all hooting and whistling at you. None of your previous matches had ever had such a large crowd. Suddenly, the door on the opposite side of the arena, and you opponent walked in. Though you weren’t surprised by who stood before you, your breath hitched in your throat when you saw Dean.

His eyes found yours instantly, and he gave you a look of reassurance before he scoped out your surroundings. You knew what he did – there was no way of getting out.

“Alright kids,” Grace announced in a microphone from outside the metal cage. “Here’s how this is going to work. Since you two refused to get your freak on, you have to spend some time in here. Don’t worry, it’s not one of those ‘to the death’ type of deals. You just need to fight each other until someone gets knocked out. Or loses a limb. Whichever happens first.”

The small crowd of demons cheered loudly at that.

“Yeah, that’s not gonna happen,” Dean retorted with a tight-lipped grin as he dropped his knife to the ground.

“Oh?” Grace asked sarcastically. “What makes you think that you actually have a choice in the matter, darling?” her condescending tone and nicknames sent shivers up your spine.

“Because,” you chimed in before you threw your own knife to the side. “We’re going to kill you. Or send you back to hell. Whichever happens first.” You glanced at Dean, and you could see the pride on his face at your taunts.

Grace laughed again and flipped her hair over her shoulder before continuing to speak. “Did I not tell you the last part? If one of you knocks the other out of consciousness, then the victor can go free. But if you don’t fight each other, if we don’t see blood and pain, then we’ll just kill you both.”

“You won’t let one of us live, you lying black-eyed bitch,” Dean swore loudly.

“Yes, I will. I swear on our Lord Lucifer and on every circle of Hell. If one of you defeats the other, we will let the winner go free.”

**********************************

Once Grace walked away from the cage and took her seat, the room got eerily quiet. Your mind was reeling. There was no way that you were going to fight Dean, and you knew that he would never hurt you. But you couldn’t just stand there and wait to die either.

“Dean, we need to do somet-”

“You need to hit me,” Dean said nonchalantly.

 “You’ve got to be kidding me,” you told him as you furrowed your brow and stepped closer to him.

Dean looked around the room again before turning to you and dropping his voice to a whisper.

“I’m serious, Y/N. We need to fight, and you need to win. I came here to save you, and I’ll be damned if I can’t do at least that,” he muttered. He was radiating anger, not towards you, but towards  _them_.

You could feel the black eyes watching you, waiting for one of you to make a move. _They’ll be waiting for a long time_ , you thought to yourself.

“Y/N…” Dean pleaded.

“No,” you insisted. “I’m not going to do it, Dean. You can’t possibly believe that they’ll let me go if I do.”

Dean grasped your arms, not tight enough to hurt, but tight enough for the crowd to murmur with anticipation.

“I know they’re probably lying, Y/N, but at least this way it’ll buy you enough time for Sam to find you. The longer you fight me, the longer you stay alive,” he said through gritted teeth.

You shook your head, pushed his arms off of you, and backed away.

“I am not going to fight you, Dean,” you asserted again.

Dean huffed and nodded his head. Then he stepped towards you again, almost menacingly.

“Why the hell can’t you listen to a simple instruction?” he barked, startling you. “Why are you so damn stubborn? If you listed to Bobby, we wouldn’t be in this mess! How stupid do you have to be to get caught and end up here, huh? I can’t believe I let Sam convince me into trying to save your worthless ass.”

You knew what he was doing – he was provoking you. He was trying to make you mad; mad enough to hulk out on him.

“It’s not going to work, Dean,” you whispered for his ears only. So he stepped up his tactics.

“You know what the problem is, Y/N? You’re weak. You’ve always been weak. No wonder you’re all alone; no one wants to be with a hunter as shitty as you.”

Even though a part of you knew he didn’t mean what he was saying, the words still stung. It was as he if was voicing your own opinions of yourself.

“Everyone else has someone. I have Sam. Bobby has Rufus. Ellen has Jo. And then there’s you, all on your own.”

“Stop it, Dean,” you begged quietly. You had been alone ever since a wendigo killed your parents when you were twelve, and Dean knew it. He also knew that you were a hunter in training at the time, and you’ve always carried the guilt of not being able to help them.

Dean began to circle you, walking around you like a wildcat toying with its prey. Then he hit your shoulder. It wasn’t a hard hit, but it caught you by surprise. He moved behind you and lightly kicked the back of your knee, causing it to give out and send you to the ground. Your breathing became heavier as anger began to surge through you. You couldn’t help it.

Dean crouched down to where you were on the ground so his eyes were leveled with yours.

“You couldn’t even save your own family,” he sneered, grabbing your chin with one hand.

Then you snapped.

**********************************

A savage snarl ripped its way from your throat as you lunged at Dean. Your fist collided with his jaw, knocking him on his back. Then you closed your eyes and continued to wildly swing punches at him; some he blocked, others he didn’t. The demon crowd yelled and tried to spur you on, but you couldn’t hear them. Instead, there was a dull roar ringing in your ears, and you could subtly hear Dean gibing you though grunts of pain. After a few seconds, which seemed like hours to you, you opened your eyes. Immediately, you were greeted by a beautiful but sad green.

The sadness in those eyes pulled you out of your reverie. You collapsed on the ground and shifted away from Dean, whose face was bruised and bloody. Because of you.

Suddenly, there was a commotion around you. The audience of demons dispersed in a panic, leaving behind only two demons to guard the door and keep an eye on you. You could vaguely hear an uproar of sorts from outside the room.

Breathing heavily, you looked down at your bloody knuckles and back to the man who was trying to keep you alive.

“Dean?” you gasped; his name barely making a sound as it left your lips.

“It’s alright, Y/N,” Dean coughed out. “You’re going to be okay.”

“No….Dean….what have I done?” you whispered, fear laced in your words. Not fear of the monsters, but of yourself.

Dean sat up, wincing slightly, and crawled over to you. “You did what you had to do,” he said softly.

“B-but I hurt you,” you stuttered, speaking rapidly as you surveyed the damage you had caused. “I’m so sorry, Dean. I don’t know how-”

“Hey,” he stopped you. Hesitantly, he reached towards you and gently touched his fingertips to your cheek.  “You have nothing to apologize for.”

The yelling outside of the room got louder. Then there was the sound of screaming and gunfire. Dean reacted quickly. He shot up to his feet, grabbed you, and huddled you both in the corner of the cage that was the farthest from the door.

“What’s happening?” you shrieked as the loud noises seemed to get closer and closer.

Dean looked down at you and smiled broadly.

“We’re getting the hell outta here.”

Then the far wall of the room exploded, raining smoke and debris down upon you.


	4. Burn

Your ears were ringing from the sound of the explosion as a heavy cloud of smoke and dust surrounded you. You choked out a cough from where you were, crouched down in a corner with Dean’s warm body huddled over yours protectively. He was yelling something, but you couldn’t make out any words. All you could hear was chaos.

Dean soothed your back as the coughs continued to wrack through you, allowing you a few moments to catch your breath while he remained alert to whatever the hell was going on. After a while, the dust cleared, revealing a figure making its way towards the two of you.

“Dean? Y/N?” a familiar voice called out.

“We’re here!” Dean replied, helping you to your feet. You rubbed your irritated eyes before your gaze settled on the tall frame of Sam Winchester. He was dirty, bloody, and grinning from ear to ear. At his side was your best friend Jo, who rushed forward and hugged you close.

“It’s about time,” Dean said as he and Sam clapped each other on the back in the way that guys do.

Once Jo had finally released her hold on you, Sam handed an odd looking gun to Dean and an angel blade to you.

“He’s the plan,” he began, speaking quickly. “There’s about fifty demons here, as far as we can tell. We just need to kill them, save the humans they have locked up in here, and then get out.”

“Mom and Cas are in the building somewhere.” Jo continued. “We need to regroup with them before we can save everyone else.”

“What about Grace?” you asked, speaking for the first time since the wall was blown up by Sam.

“Who?” Jo asked.

“The bitch in charge,” Dean answered through gritted teeth. “Don’t worry, Y/N. We’ll get her. You and me.” You nodded at his promise before the four of you headed out of the room to find the rest of your rescue party.

***********************************

It didn’t take you long to realize why the guns that Dean and Jo were carrying looked to weird. As you and your friends were running through the building, you were constantly being intercepted by demons. Before they could use their powers against you, Jo aimed and fired, shooting a blast of water towards them. They hissed and screeched when the liquid made contact with their meatsuits, and it clicked in your mind that the guns were filled with holy water. Dean had the same realization, and joined Jo by using his own gun. While the demons were distracted by the pain, you and Sam, who was armed with the demon-killing knife, proceeded to stab and slash.

You, Sam, Dean and Jo continued on like that, leaving a trail of bodies in your wake. Every inch of your body screamed in protest as you fought your way through more and more demons, but you couldn’t stop. Not when freedom was so close. If this were a few years ago when you first started hunting with the Winchesters, you would have at least made an effort to try to exorcize the demons in order to free the people who they were possessing; but you all knew that there was a time and a place for mercy, and this wasn’t it.

It wasn’t long before you found Ellen and Cas, who were in the middle of fighting a group of four demons. The six of you took them out with ease, and for a few minutes, all was quiet.

Judging by Ellen’s facial expression, you couldn’t tell if she wanted to scream at you or hug you. Luckily, she settled on the latter. She carefully engulfed you in her arms, like Jo had, but in a way that could only be described as motherly. Then she did the same to Dean. Afterwards, she took a step back, and looked the both of you up and down, assessing the damage.

“Remind me to kick both of your asses for worrying us like that when get out of here,” she half scolded.

“Yes ma’am,” you and Dean mumbled at the same time. As harsh as she seemed, you knew that Ellen was only masking her relief, and you were grateful to her for caring so much.  

“Hello, Dean. Hello, Y/N.” Cas nodded his head in a greeting. The last time you saw the angel, he told you that he and his powers had been cut off from heaven. He couldn’t heal you, and you could tell that this weighed on him. So you smiled softly in his direction to let him know you’d be okay regardless of his lack of heavenly abilities. Then he turned to Dean.

 “You do realize that this would have been much easier if you had waited for us as planned, yes?” he suggested.

That sparked your curiosity. “What do you mean?” you asked Cas. “Isn’t this the plan?”

“Kind of,” Jo said. “But Dean wasn’t supposed to—”

“Are we gonna get moving, or are we just gonna stand around and chat all day?” Dean growled, cutting her off.

Without another word, you all split up into two groups and headed off in opposite directions – Ellen, Jo and Cas went to free the human prisoners and you, Sam, and Dean went towards the heart of the building to find the control room and, ultimately, Grace.

***********************************

The three of you walked in silence, not making any noise unless more demons attacked you, and even then the building was still relatively quiet. Eerily quiet. As you continued on you noticed that Dean, who seemed to be stuck to your side, was consistently sneaking worried glances at you. Before you could tell him to cut it out, you reached your destination. You made a mental note to ask Sam later how he seemed to know his way around the building as the three of you entered the room.

The control room was what you expected it to be. Computers, flashing lights, buttons and video monitors lined the walls with more demons watching over them. Your enemies jumped into attack mode as soon as they saw you, but were soon halted by your weapons. After a brief struggle, resulting in more minor injuries, you and the Winchesters had successfully seized the room.

You went to the video monitors, looking for signs of your other friends and Grace. You found Cas and the Harvelles easily, the screen showed you that they were almost at the corridor of cells where the human captives were being held. The memory of Grace looking up to a security camera and nodding her head before the door was opened for her became prominent in your mind.

“The door to get to the prisoners is automated,” you told the Winchesters. “Grace would always signal to the cameras when she wanted the door to open. There has to be a button or something in here.”

“On it,” Sam affirmed, making his way around the room to find the controls for the door.

While the boys were busy looking around, you reluctantly took a second to sit down in a chair. It was the softest thing you had felt in a long time, and it was a welcome comfort to your aching body. You closed your eyes for a bit in an attempt to dull your raging headache when a hand tentatively landed on your shoulder.

You flew up in a frenzy, angel blade held up and ready for a fight, only to be faced Dean’s startled green eyes.

“Woah, Y/N! It’s okay! It’s just me!”

You took a deep breath as you lowered the blade and turned back to the monitors. Dean placed his hands gently on your shoulders and rubbed his thumbs in light circles, soothing the pain there.

“I can’t find her anywhere,” you told him quietly. He didn’t need you to elaborate, he understood immediately. Grace kidnapped you, tortured you, and turned you into something close to a monster. You wanted, no needed, to make her pay.

“We’ll give her hell, Y/N,” he murmured for your ears only. “I swear it. Once we get everyone else out, we’ll make this place burn.”

You opened your mouth to thank him, but before you could get the words out, Sam was calling out to your from across the room.

“I think I found it!” he exclaimed. You held your index finger up to him, telling him to wait as you observed the monitors again. When you saw that Cas, Ellen and Jo were almost at the door, you gave him the thumbs up.

“Okay, now!”

You watched as the large heavy door on the other slide of the building slid open, then you turned to the other screens as the hunters and the angel moved quickly, breaking open the cells and letting the terrified humans out. You sighed in relief, just as the door to the room you were in crashed down. The Winchesters leapt to action immediately, but were knocked back and pinned against the walls by an invisible force.

“YOU!” Grace’s shrill voice screamed. “YOU HAVE RUINED EVERYTHING!”

***********************************

This time, you were ready for her. You made a mad dash for Dean’s discarded water gun and shot at the demon who had turned your life into a nightmare. She shrieked in pain as the holy water burned her, but she never released her hold on the boys. You pulled the trigger on the gun again, only to find out that it was finally out of water. Cursing under your breath, you grabbed your angel blade.

“That’s cute,” Grace spat out, right before she lunged at you.

After a short struggle, she latched on to your wrist and snapped it, effectively ripping the blade from your grasp and tossing it away. You screamed in pain, hot tears running treacherously down your cheeks, but you refused to give in. Instead, you landed a hard punch straight to her nose. She groaned as scarlet blood flowed down her face. You took the opportunity to grab her shoulder with your good hand and bring her body down on your up-moving knee. It connected with her chest, ensuing a cracking sound to echo from her ribs. As she fell to the floor, Grace pulled you down with her and used whatever strength she had left to slam your already injured head into the ground.

The room spun around you and bright colors danced in front of your eyes, like something out of a cartoon. Something warm and sticky pooled around your head, clinging to your hair and skin. You could hear distant shouting again, but you chose to ignore it. The darkness that was calling to you seemed much more peaceful.

As you lay unmoving on the ground, the Winchesters charged forward, having been released from Grace’s hold when she turned her full attention on you. Dean snarled and threw his fist to the demon’s face as Sam knelt down at your side.

“Y/N! Can you hear me?” Sam yelled, shaking you gently. Your eyes fluttered open again, and you shifted your gaze to see Dean beating the crap out of Grace as she laughed manically.

You clutched weakly at Sam’s arm and spoke quietly, “The knife, Sam.”

Sam handed the demon-killing knife to you, and helped you into a sitting position. Your head still pounded and the room still spun, but you were determined to end this right then and now. When Dean saw you, he understood immediately. He pulled the still laughing Grace up off the floor, and thrust her in front of you. Without wasting a second, you plunged the knife into the demon’s chest and watched as an orange light flashed and fizzled out from inside her body. Then she dropped to the floor, dead.

***********************************

“I’m going to pick you up, okay Y/N?” Sam asked you. Even though you could feel him beside you, his voice sounded very distant.

Very slowly, the ground disappeared from underneath you, and you whimpered in pain. Sam mumbled apologies as he laid you down on an empty table. You laid there, breathing in and out as steadily as your could for what seemed like hours. Sam pressed something to your head, probably a cloth to stop the bleeding. Then Dean’s voice sounded from somewhere in the room.

“Sammy, they’re out. Let’s end this.”

He and Sam switched places, with Sam going to one of the computers and Dean moving next to you. He placed pressure on your head as gently as he could.

“It’s gonna be okay, Y/N. It’s almost over,” he said comfortingly.

Then a loud voice boomed through the building, Sam’s voice, chanting something in Latin. Even with a head injury, you knew an exorcism incantation when you heard it. Sam must have been saying it through the building’s PA system. You vaguely heard distant screams as demons were driven away. It really was almost over.

“It’s about damn time,” you muttered.

Dean chuckled softly. “Yeah, well we had to get everyone else out first so they wouldn’t have more people to possess,” he explained. You knew he was right.

After a short while, Sam and Dean said something to each other, you couldn’t tell what. Then Dean lifted you up into his arms and carried you out of the building. You didn’t realize you were outside until you felt a cool breeze on your skin. You opened your heavy eyes to see the starry night sky greeting you. You and Dean heaved a sigh of relief in unison just as the rest of your group found you.

“We got everyone out, the prisoners and the people who were possessed,” Jo reported.

“And we’ve notified the authorities. They should be arriving here in precisely eight minutes and three seconds,” said Cas.

“How many survived?” you asked weakly.

Everyone hesitated for a few seconds before Ellen cleared her throat and spoke up.

“Thirteen all together. Five were prisoners, the rest were exorcized. They’re all up the road, waiting for the police.”

“They all seemed to have been a trance or something, because none of them have any idea what happened in these past few weeks.” Jo added.

Thirteen people saved. It wasn’t much, but you knew it was better than nothing. Now there was only one thing left to do. Dean made you a promise, and he would be sure to keep it.

“Did you guys dowse the place?” he asked, getting “yeses” in return.

Then Sam pulled something out of the bag he was carrying and handed it to his older brother, who showed it to you. It was a Molotov cocktail.

“Would you like to do the honors?” he asked you with a grin. As tempting as the offer was, you knew you didn’t have enough strength left to throw the bottle as far as you needed to, so you shook your head slightly.

“I got to kill the demon-bitch,” you said, smiling. “This one’s yours, Dean.”

Dean took a lighter from Sam, lit the bomb, ran towards the building and threw it. It smashed through a window, setting the place ablaze almost instantly. The fire spread quickly, and you were thankful for the physical distance between you and it. As the flames roared, your group headed towards the two vehicles parked at the end of the road – the Harvelle’s truck and Dean’s Impala. Sam tried to hand Dean the keys to his beloved car, but Dean declined.

“I’ll take the back seat with Y/N,” he said.

Dean placed you gently on the comfy leather seat and then slid in beside you. As soon as the doors closed the fact that you were finally safe, finally free, hit you.  While tears of happiness and pain streamed down your face, Dean wrapped an arm around you and kissed your temple, careful not to disturb your injuries. A small laugh bubbled from your lips and the Winchesters couldn’t help but smile at the cheerful sound. Then Sam started the Impala’s engine and sped away, leaving your burning nightmare in the rear view mirror.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The story doesn't end here! Keep an eye out for a few more installments in the coming weeks :)


	5. Then

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This part is a flashback to before the reader got captured (before all the other parts of this story). It explains the tension between Dean and the Reader.

Sam sat on the dingy motel bed as you and his brother bickered, just as you had a thousand and one times before. The younger Winchester could probably recite every single one of your arguments verbatim, not that he’d ever admit to that.

"Its the same every time,” you ranted as you furiously paced the room. “You call for my help on a hunt, I somehow end up as the monster bait, and before I can even get a good hit on the thing, you swoop in and hog all the action!"

Dean turned to you and crossed his arms over his chest. “For the record, Sam called you in on this one, not me. Besides Y/N, you’re a better damsel in distress than you are a hunter. Maybe you should consider a career switch.”

You narrowed your eyes as you tried to keep the brunt of your rage at bay. Sam flinched at your expression, unsure if he should intervene before the fight got physical. Dean, on the other hand, was the definition of calm. If you didn’t know any better, you’d think he was provoking you on purpose. 

"God, you’re such an asshole, Dean!” you exclaimed. “I don’t know why I even bother to help you anymore."

Then without missing a beat, Dean said, “Well if that’s how you feel then maybe you should hunt on your own, seeing as you’re so great at going solo.”

That was a cheap shot, even for him. Dean knew about your weakness - how you feared being alone ever since you lost your family - and he used it against you.

Sam stood from the bed and stood between the two of you. “Hey, okay, why don’t we just calm down for a minute before -”

“No Sam, he’s right,” you said. You picked up your duffle bag and headed towards the door. “Let me know when your brother finally manages to pull his head out of his ass.”

Then you were gone.

“What the hell, Dean?!” Sam snapped as soon as your car pulled out of the parking lot. “Y/N is our friend! She needs us and we need her, yet you’re always treating her like shit!”

“Not always,” Dean mumbled, eyes to the ground.

“No, you’re right. One second you guys are buddies, and the next you’re tearing each other’s heads off! You need to call her and apologize. Bobby will be pissed when he finds out you made her go hunt on her own.”

Without another word, Sam headed into the bathroom for a much needed shower.

Once there was no one left in the room, Dean poured himself a glass of whiskey and sat in front of the TV without bothering to turn it on.

“Let them be mad,” he muttered to himself. “She’s safer alone than she is with me.”

It was 17 days later when Bobby called the Winchesters to tell them that something had gone horribly wrong.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The next part will be the final part, and it will take place in the present, after Dean and the Reader are rescued.


	6. Safe

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Dean and the Reader finally hash things out.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This comes back to the present, after the Reader and Dean are rescued.

You awoke from your deep sleep with a foggy mind and an aching body. Almost immediately, you whipped your head around to survey your surroundings and quickly deduced that you were in a motel room. The familiar setting almost gave you a sense of comfort. Without a clue as to how you ended up there, you pulled the worn blankets off of yourself and tried to stand. Pain shot through every nerve inside of you, and you couldn’t help but cry out as you stumbled to the carpeted floor.

Within seconds, a door in the room opened and five very bruised people rushed towards you.

“Y/N, are you alright?” Sam asked you as he and Ellen gently helped you up and back onto the bed. 

“Yeah,” you replied, though your voice barely made it out of your throat. You coughed, and Cas handed you a glass of water, which you gulped down in record time. Then you tried again.

“Yeah, I’m fine.”

“We’ll I’d say you’re far from fine young lady, but you’re gettin’ there,” Ellen said, her motherly tone very prominent. “Just wait until Bobby gets you on the phone. He’s been calling every five minutes for the past two days worried sick!”

“Two days?” you asked. “How long was I asleep for?”

Cas answered before anyone else could. “Approximately one day, twenty-one hours and thirty-four minutes; depending on exactly what time you woke up.”

“Yeah, you’ve been out since Dean got you in the car after we torched that place,” Jo chimed in.

You nodded in response, as your mind had wandered somewhere else. You couldn’t help but focus on Dean, sitting silently in a chair at the far end of the room. He was cloaked in shadow, yet you saw how tired and pained he was without being able to see any injuries. When he noticed your gaze on him, he smiled softly at you.

“So, what happened since we got out?” you asked no one in particular. “Did we save everyone? Were the police involved? Did any monsters survive? Whe–” you were interrupted by a coughing fit. Jo patted your back until it was over, and then everyone looked at each other warily.

“Maybe you should rest a bit more, Y/N,” Sam suggested, tentatively.

“Sam’s right,” Ellen insisted before you could protest. “There’ll be time for this discussion later, but right now you need to take it easy.”

After a few glances between them, your friends began to head out; Jo gently squeezed your hand, Cas patted your leg, and both Sam and Ellen gave you forehead kisses. The warm fuzzy family feeling was almost overwhelming in the best possible way.

“We’re just in the adjoining room, Y/N, so just shout if you need us,” Jo told you, before heading out.

Sam was the last one left when you both noticed that the older Winchester still hadn’t gotten up from his chair. When he realized that Sam was waiting for him to make a move, he hesitantly began to rise to his feet, glancing between you and Sam as if he were trying to convey a message to his brother.

Apparently, Sam got the message loud and clear, because he then faked a cough and said, “Uh, maybe Dean should stay here in case you need anything, Y/N, if that’s okay with you.”

His suggestion caught you off guard, and before you could verbally agree, Sam was back in the other room. It wasn’t long after the door clicked shut that Dean finally began to speak.

*********************************************** 

“How’re you feelin’, Y/N? The truth.”

You let out a heavy sigh, knowing that it was no use lying to him He always knew. “Like I’ve been run over by a truck,” you told him. “Repeatedly.”  

He gave you another smile as he took a seat on the edge of your bed, careful not to jostle you. In the lamplight, you could see the scrapes and bruises that adorned his skin. 

“We kinda match now,” he said when he noticed how wide your eyes got at the sight of him. 

He laid his arm beside your own to compare. Your arm was covered in marks, some stark against your skin color and others fading. Without even looking in a mirror, you knew that your body was a patchwork of red, green and blue; much like Dean’s. Though somehow, he pulled the ‘bloody and beaten’ look off like he were a movie star in stage make-up. He was still effortlessly handsome; and it drove you insane.

After a few seconds of not-so-awkward silence, Dean got fidgety; constantly moving around to try to sit in a comfortable position. You figured that he had to have been in as much pain and discomfort  as you were in, so you fluffed up the extra pillows on the bed and motioned to the spot beside you.

“If you’re gonna wait around for me to fall asleep, you may as well get comfy,” you told him, trying to sound as nonchalant as possible.

Dean grinned as he got up and then laid down next to you, crossing this arms behind his head and leaning back into the softness of the pillows. As he settled in on top of the covers, a thought began to nag at you.

“Hey, Dean?” you asked.

“Hmm?” he grunted in response.

“Two nights ago when they were getting us out, Cas and Jo said something about you not following the plan…what did they mean by that?”

He sighed before turning towards you and propping his head up on his hand.

“The plan was for me and Sam to sit tight until the others showed up so we could all storm the place and bust you outta there together. Safety in numbers and all that crap,” he explained. “But I couldn’t just wait around doing nothing while you were in trouble, so…” he paused.

“So?”

“So, I went in alone. Snuck out in the middle of the night, left Sammy a note telling him to wait for the others. I even left my friggin’ car behind!” He took a second to inhale a deep breath and then let out a huff. “And, well, yeah. You know the rest.”

*********************************************** 

You shook your head in disbelief at the man laying beside you.

“You could have gotten yourself killed Dean!” you exclaimed, twisting to face him properly. As you did that, your entire body protested in the form of pain. Lots of pain.

“Woah, woah, take it easy,” Dean soothed while he tried to get you to calm down. He shifted closer to you, and gently wrapped an arm around you to keep you still. He didn’t move away once you had settled down after a few minutes. Instead, he stroked up and down your arm with his fingertips, a feather light touch that sent the warmest sensations through you. 

When he was sure you weren’t gonna jump up at him again, he continued speaking. “I know it was stupid and reckless, but for the record, I’d do it all again to keep you safe. I’m just mad at myself for not getting to you sooner.”

You couldn’t stay mad at him any longer, not after that confession.

“We’ve both been pretty stupid over the past few weeks, haven’t we?” you sighed.

Dean chuckled in agreement. “I guess that’s why we make such a good team.”

“Team?” you fake scoffed. “You mean when I act as the bait to your hunter?”

“No,” Dean said, his voice at a hoarse whisper. He placed his hand on one of your own, and waited for your gaze to reach his. Once it did, he searched your eyes, urging you to see how much he meant what he was about to say. “No, Y/N. I  never should have said that. I didn’t mean any of it and I wanted to take it back even before you walked out of that door. When Bobby told us you were missing, I was scared that I’d never get to tell you how sorry I am, because I really am sorry. You’re one of the best damn hunters I’ve ever known, Y/N and I’m so sorry for making you feel like you weren’t.”

His apology was messy and all over the place, but you knew how heartfelt it was. You could tell by the tremor in his voice that he was truly sorry and you could see in his eyes how much he feared losing you.

You felt your lips involuntarily curve up into a smile. “I forgive you, Dean,” you told him as you felt your eyelids begin to grow heavy. “And I’m sorry for kicking your ass back there. Now we’re even, I guess.”

Dean exhaled in relief and pulled the blanket around you, tucking you in for the night.

“So, you got any plans after you heal up?”

You had always marveled at his ability to switch between light and heavy conversations without missing a beat.

“What do you mean?” you yawned, unable to hide how exhausted you were.

“Well I heard Ellen and Bobby arguing over the phone. Looks like they both want custody over you and neither of them are willing to share.”

You thought about it for a minute, appreciating how much they cared about you; and then dreading how much they were going to smother with parental supervision after your latest adventure.

Dean must have seen you grimace, because he chuckled and said “Yeah, whoever you choose to stay with is never gonna let you out of their sight again. Or, you could pick the third option.”

“What third option?” you asked, both confused and intrigued.

“Hit the road with Sammy and me.”

“What?”

“Yeah, I figure Sam needs someone to talk nerd with,” Dean rolled his eyes before his face became somber once again. “And, I miss being with you, Y/N.” His fingers trailed down your arm, past your wrist, and laced together with your own hand. “I promise you, I won’t mess this up again.” 

He wasn’t referring to hunting anymore. He wasn’t even talking about your friendship. What he meant was something different altogether. Something  _more_. And you wanted it. You squeezed Dean’s hand as a blush colored your cheeks, a physical sign that you felt the same way he did.

“Look at us engaging in pillow talk,” Dean winked, trying to bring humor back into the conversation.

“Don’t get any ideas,” you said with a smile as you closed your eyes, allowing his voice and his warmth to help lull you to sleep.

“Me?” he countered. “Never.”

Dean continued to hold you close while you drifted off. After a few hazy minutes, you felt something new - the tingle of his lips resting at your forehead. And before sleep pulled you under completely, you heard him murmur against your skin, “Someday, Y/N. Definitely someday.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And that's the end! Thanks for reading! :)


End file.
